‘Alexander Aitken (died 1799) was the son of a land surveyor in Berwick-upon-Tweed, England. He emigrated to Canada and was appointed a Deputy Surveyor in 1784. He prepared one of the first proposals for a town at Toronto for Lord Dorchester and later did many general surveys and maps, including the survey of the Town of York [below] for Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe.
This map shows the earliest known plan of the Town of York. The 10-block "Old" town was laid out in 1793 on a site selected by Simcoe in the eastern part of the lands reserved for government and military use. Part of the first concession of York Township north of the township baseline (Queen Street) is also shown in its original form, before creation of the park lots.
Aitken surveyed the harbour and peninsula, and this map contains the first accurate depiction of the peninsula, the marsh, and the rivers and streams along the shoreline.’
The soundings for this map were taken by Joseph Bouchette.
Click the image to view a full-size version.
Plan of York Harbour Surveyed by order of Lt Govr Simcoe [Sgd] by A. Aitken. D [Syr?] 179[3]
Image courtesy The National Archives of the UK: CO 700 Canada no.60.
Winearls, MUC no. 2015
Digital Repatriation
The Aitken map was sent by John Graves Simcoe along with a letter he dispatched to Henry Dundas, Secretary of State for War (and the Colonies) in 1793. We—Canada—never got the map back; the original is held by the UK National Archives in their holdings of British military correspondence. As a result few Canadians have ever seen this version in its entirety, in colour; locally, only transcript copies have been available—until now.
Thanks to the generous support of Angie and Jeff Hocking (and their friends), I was able to obtain the above scan, and 'repatriate' this significant piece of Toronto’s history. I am very pleased to present it to you for general use and inspection.
Thanks Angie & Jeff for the help!
Here’s an transcripted excerpt from Simcoe’s letter (map reference highlighted):
Image courtesy TPL: Correspondence of Lieut. Governor John Graves Simcoe (Vol. 2, p58)
Other copies [the 'local' versions]:
The version below is a copy that was specially prepared for John Ross Robertson’s Landmarks of Toronto. It’s useful for sussing out the details of the map which may be faded on the original.
Click the image to view a full-size version.
Courtesy of Toronto Public Library: T1793/4Mlrg. Coloured manuscript; 1 inch to 20 chains.
A photo of the plan as it appears in the Correspondence of Lieut. Governor John Graves Simcoe (Vol. 2, p57):
See also University of Toronto photostat & this other copied Plan of York Harbour by Aitken (note D and E no longer in References).
Please ‘Like’ and Share these maps with other Toronto history enthusiasts! (+1s are also welcome!)
This map shows the earliest known plan of the Town of York. The 10-block "Old" town was laid out in 1793 on a site selected by Simcoe in the eastern part of the lands reserved for government and military use. Part of the first concession of York Township north of the township baseline (Queen Street) is also shown in its original form, before creation of the park lots.
Aitken surveyed the harbour and peninsula, and this map contains the first accurate depiction of the peninsula, the marsh, and the rivers and streams along the shoreline.’
- Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, MAPPING TORONTO'S FIRST CENTURY 1787-1884
The soundings for this map were taken by Joseph Bouchette.
Click the image to view a full-size version.
Plan of York Harbour Surveyed by order of Lt Govr Simcoe [Sgd] by A. Aitken. D [Syr?] 179[3]
Image courtesy The National Archives of the UK: CO 700 Canada no.60.
Winearls, MUC no. 2015
Digital Repatriation
The Aitken map was sent by John Graves Simcoe along with a letter he dispatched to Henry Dundas, Secretary of State for War (and the Colonies) in 1793. We—Canada—never got the map back; the original is held by the UK National Archives in their holdings of British military correspondence. As a result few Canadians have ever seen this version in its entirety, in colour; locally, only transcript copies have been available—until now.
Thanks to the generous support of Angie and Jeff Hocking (and their friends), I was able to obtain the above scan, and 'repatriate' this significant piece of Toronto’s history. I am very pleased to present it to you for general use and inspection.
Thanks Angie & Jeff for the help!
Here’s an transcripted excerpt from Simcoe’s letter (map reference highlighted):
Image courtesy TPL: Correspondence of Lieut. Governor John Graves Simcoe (Vol. 2, p58)
Other copies [the 'local' versions]:
The version below is a copy that was specially prepared for John Ross Robertson’s Landmarks of Toronto. It’s useful for sussing out the details of the map which may be faded on the original.
Click the image to view a full-size version.
Courtesy of Toronto Public Library: T1793/4Mlrg. Coloured manuscript; 1 inch to 20 chains.
Another version, a transcript copy:
Click the image to view a full-size version (3MB).
Image courtesy TPL.
Image courtesy TPL.
A photo of the plan as it appears in the Correspondence of Lieut. Governor John Graves Simcoe (Vol. 2, p57):
See also University of Toronto photostat & this other copied Plan of York Harbour by Aitken (note D and E no longer in References).
Please ‘Like’ and Share these maps with other Toronto history enthusiasts! (+1s are also welcome!)
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